Creamy Lemon Risotto
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For a creamy and decadent, gluten free side dish, make this Lemon Risotto recipe. With tender Arborio, parmesan, and fresh basil, this lemon rice tastes fantastic with any protein!
This lemon risotto has a bright, refreshing flavor, and the fresh basil and parmesan transform it into something extra special.
To make a decadent and indulgent risotto, many restaurants add a splash of cream and/or a pat of butter to the rice at the end of the cook time.
Because our focus is creating healthy recipes, this lemon risotto recipe is lower in fat and calories than traditional risotto recipes. The good news is, you can create a creamy, cheesy risotto without fat!
Don’t let the thought of making the lemon rice intimidate you, because our recipe is easy to make!
It pairs well with many different proteins, too. It’s perfect as a lighter side for chicken recipes like chicken cacciatore, and healthy chicken piccata. If pork chops, pot roast, or honey garlic shrimp are on your menu, make this easy healthy rice dish – it’s incredible with those proteins as well!
Liz’s Tips for Perfect Lemon Risotto
- Use a shallow, wide pan. The wider cooking surface area helps the rice absorb the cooking liquid more quickly.
- Cook the dish over low heat. The low heat allows the starches in the rice to thicken the dish and make a creamy cheese risotto. Using high heat will prevent this from happening!
- Be sure the broth is warm, and add it gradually. Again, so that the starches in the rice can release properly into the broth, you want to add about 1/2 cup of stock at a time.
- Wait for the rice to absorb one batch of liquid before adding the next.
- Stir continuously. Make sure to stir the rice constantly during cooking to prevent it from burning.
- Use high quality cheese, and grate it fresh. Please avoid using parmesan from the green plastic canister. Use a block of real parmesan cheese, and grate it yourself for the best cheese risotto.
If you love the flavor combination of lemon and basil, be sure to check out our recipe for Lemon Basil Vinaigrette. It’s a delicious and healthy salad dressing!
Ingredients
A citrus juicer and citrus zester will also be helpful to have!
Substitutions and recipe variations
Arborio rice: If you want to make this recipe using a short grain brown rice instead of white, you certainly can. Just be aware that brown rice requires more liquid and more time to cook than white. Arborio rice is the best rice for risotto!
Broth: Broth and stock are essentially the same thing and can be used interchangeably. Depending on what main dish you’re serving the lemon rice with, you can use beef broth, chicken broth, or vegetable broth. We typically make this dish with low sodium chicken broth.
Basil: You can substitute the basil with your favorite fresh herb. Parsley, sage, oregano, and tarragon are all delicious options! We recommend using fresh herbs for this recipe.
Add Veggies! Soft vegetables like roasted peppers, zucchini, and mushrooms would be delicious additions to this recipe. If you’re a veggie lover, you might want to make this vegetable risotto!
Gluten free risotto – The rice and all of the other ingredients in the lemon risotto recipe are generally considered to be gluten free. Just be sure to check ingredient labels to ensure that it was manufactured in a gluten-free facility.
How to Make Creamy Lemon Risotto
This is just a summary of the steps involved in making the recipe. Scroll down to the recipe card for the full instructions, or click on the Jump to Recipe button, below.
- Sauté onions and garlic. Heat olive oil in large sauté pan then add onions and garlic to olive oil. Sauté until translucent, about 5-8 minutes.
- Stir in uncooked rice. Add warm chicken broth, 1/2 cup at a time. Wait until one portion of broth is absorbed before adding the next.
- When rice is tender, stir in cheese, lemon juice, lemon zest, salt and pepper. Just before serving, stir in fresh basil.
risotto recipe FAQ
With cheese, basil, and fresh citrus, we think our lemon risotto recipe creates a dish with plenty of flavor! If you want to add more flavor, you could add some minced shallot, or substitute shallot for the onion.
Restaurants do a lot of par-cooking of ingredients and dishes that normally take quite a while to prepare. By preparing risotto to the point where cheese and dairy products are typically added, it can be chilled and kept in a refrigerator until it’s needed.
No, because rinsing the rice removes the starch, which is necessary for creating the creamy consistency.
storage
Refrigerator: The lemon rice will keep for up to 4 days in an airtight container. However, risotto is a dish that is best eaten immediately after it is made, because it’s difficult to reheat without it becoming gummy or sticky.
Freezing: We haven’t tried freezing risotto. Because we don’t think it will freeze well, we don’t recommend it.
Reheating: If you have leftovers of lemon parmesan risotto, you can reheat them in a pan on the stove over medium heat. If the consistency is very thick and/or sticky, you can try to thin it out a bit by adding a couple of tablespoons of stock, water, or butter.
Serving suggestions
Risotto is a really versatile side dish, so it goes with almost any protein! Our favorite way to serve it is with Baked Chicken Cutlets and Roasted Carrots (pictured above)!
It’s also great with Crockpot Turkey Breast or Crockpot Whole Chicken with Roasted Brussels Sprouts!
As we mentioned earlier, this side dish pairs really well with most meat proteins. If you want to serve a plant-based dinner, the cheesy risotto is delicious with legumes like beans and lentils, either stirred in or served on the side.
Other healthy side dishes you might like
Creamy Lemon Risotto
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- ½ cup finely chopped onions
- ½ tablespoon minced garlic (about 3 cloves)
- 1 cup arborio rice or other short grain rice
- 2 ½ cups chicken stock low or no sodium
- ½ cup grated parmesan cheese freshly grated from a block
- 1 tablespoon lemon zest zest of 1 lemon
- ¼ cup lemon juice juice of 1-2 lemons
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ cup finely chopped basil leaves
Instructions
- Heat olive oil in a 4-quart (or larger) sauté or sauce pan over medium heat. When oil is hot, add onions and garlic to olive oil. Sauté until translucent, about 5-8 minutes.
- Add in uncooked rice and ½ cup chicken broth. Stir together, cover the pan, and bring to a boil.
- Once boiling, reduce heat to medium-low and simmer until liquid is almost entirely absorbed, then stir in another ½ cup broth. Repeat the process until all broth has been added and absorbed, about 15-20 minutes.
- Remove pan from heat, stir in cheese, lemon juice, lemon zest, salt and pepper. Stir to combine, then stir in fresh basil.
- Serve immediately, and enjoy!
Notes
- Be sure to add the liquid gradually, about 1/2 cup at a time, and cook the rice over medium-low heat.
- Stir constantly to prevent the risotto from burning.
- You can substitute the basil with your favorite fresh herb. Parsley, sage, oregano, and tarragon are all delicious options.
I’m getting ready to prepare this yummy risotto recipe. Im adding marinated artichoke hearts.
Sounds great. I have made many risotto recipes but not with lemon and basil. I will try this. I have to say I am surprised you have never made this with Arborio. Arborio is the classic rice used for risotto. It results in a much creamier dish than regular rice and therefore you can less cheese if you want to cut the fat.
The idea of making risotto always scared me because I was always told it takes forever to make, but not this recipe. It’s so easy and tasty. Just the right amount of creamy deliciousness. I always make it when we have halibut. It’s the perfect side.
Thank you so much, Jessica! I love to hear that! Risotto doesn’t have to be difficult 🙂
I had never tried risotto before due to its connotation with a LONG cooking time, but holy jamoly this recipe was amazing! Made it as written and it came out creamy and delicious.
So glad you liked it Kaitlin!
How does one, bring to boil, reduce heat, and then simmer for 10 minutes on high? So we don’t reduce the temp? Confused.
Hi Natalie, I’m not sure what the confusion is here. Add in rice, 2 cups of broth, wine and bring to a boil. Once the pot is boiling, reduce the heat to a simmer and cook for 10 minutes until the rice starts to absorb the liquid. Let me know if you have any questions!
Great flavour combo. I changed the method slightly. I added the rice and gently sautéed until grains were translucent . I then added wine to deglaze the pan before adding stock. I also added roasted pine nuts at the end.
So glad you liked it, Ann! That sounds absolutely delicious – love the addition of roasted pine nuts!
Delicious! I prefer to make it with the white wine but my younger children refuse to eat it when I do. Instead, I use vegetable stock (a couple of good quality stock cubes are fine) until the rice is nearly ready then switch to using almond milk (because my eldest daughter is a vegan). This has proved really popular with the whole family. The little ones & I add parmesan at the end but my eldest just adds a bit more lemon zest, juice & pepper. Win, win!!!
So glad you like it, Isabel!! Love the tweaks you make to the recipe + that you can make it work for your whole family!!
Looking forward to trying this with couscous for a quicker version!
I’m sure that would be delicious, Nancy!
Found this looking for dinner ideas for my family…so happy I found this! Great recipe.
So glad you liked it, Alyssa!!
Haven’t had risotto in some time. This recipe might change that. Thanks!
So glad to hear it, Matt! I hope you love it!
Oh HECK yes I want!! Pinning right now. This sounds SO amazing with that light taste of lemon and fresh basil. You are killing it!
Thanks friend!! The lemon and basil combo is ahhhh-mazing.
I love a good risotto, so I’m glad you found a way to cook it more quickly!
Thanks, Christina! Me too 🙂
This looks delicious elizabeth!
Thank you so much, Nicole!
I love risotto! this looks delicious and i love the mushroom idea for next time.
Thanks Anne, I can’t wait to try it with mushrooms!
Oh yum! This would be so yummy on a hot summer day. Lemon is so refreshing, and I have a ton of basil already!
Exactly!! It’s perfect for the warmer weather!
This looks so delicious! I love Basil & I can’t wait to tty this risotto!!!
Thanks, Angela! Basil is my favorite herb to cook with 🙂
Oh my goodness, this looks delicious!
Thank you so much, Kait!
Yummy! I will definitely be making this!
Thanks, Casey! Hope you like it 🙂
Lemon basil is such a delicious flavor combo. Very spring-y!
Totally agree! It’s so fresh and yummy 🙂
I love risotto and haven’t made it in a while yum!
Then you should try this one!
thanks for the recipe! that sounds delicious! and perfect for summer!
Thanks, Glenneth!
This sounds simply delicious and refreshing! I’ve made lemon risotto with asparagus or peas but never thought to just add basil, and I love basil!
Oooh I bet that is yummy with peas or asparagus! I’ll have to try this
So simple, but I’m sure delicious! I will definitely be trying this!
Yes! Super delicious! 🙂
This looks so fresh and delicious – and easy too!
We loveee risotto and make it with a whole lot of different flavours and adds ins, however, Jesse’s favourite has to be my boscaiola risotto with ham, mushrooms and scallions!
Thank you! That sounds amazing! I’m going to try this recipe with mushrooms next time – I feel like that would be fantastic!
Looks and sounds fantastic! I’ve never made risotto either! This would be lovely with long grain brown rice!
Thanks, Cassie! It’s very simple to make. I bet it would be delicious with long grain brown rice!